Groundcover to deter dogs?
Birdy
sycamore in front of my house. Recently, I had the bluestone sidewalk in front
of my house repaired at great personal expense, and after that was done, I
built a low, attractive cedar enclosure around the tree well (roughly 9 feet by
3 feet). I dug out the tree's soil -- more dust, glass, and rocks than soil,
actually -- and replaced it with topsoil and compost. Then I planted all kinds
of spring bulbs, covered them with chicken wire to deter squirrels, and mulched
thoroughly. While this was going on (all summer), practically everyone in the
neighborhood stopped by to praise my efforts.
I'm sure city dwellers have already guessed the punchline to this story: The
bulbs aren't making it, because dogs are using the enclosure as a toilet, and
scratching the ground afterwards. Sure, people approve of someone else spending
a fortune on stonework, enclosures, topsoil, and bulbs, but that doesn't mean
they'll curb their dogs.
I'm going to put a taller wire enclosure inside the low cedar enclosure, but
tall dogs will just step over it. Besides, on the street side, the enclosure
needs to stay low so parked cars can open their doors.
What I need to know is this: Is there any ground cover that can help deter
dogs? A low holly, or something else with unwelcoming spines? It's got to be
low, because I want my crocuses and other bulbs to be seen when they emerge.
And it's got to be reasonably durable and not too fussy about watering; I
water, but summer here can be brutally dry. I'd greatly prefer something
evergreen. The enclosure gets lots of light, but not very much direct sun in
the summer, since it's under the sycamore's canopy.
Anything come to mind?
Thanks,
Birdy
paghat
bird...@aol.comicbook (Birdy) wrote:
If pine cones would make a nice-looking mulch, they tend to discourage
dogs, but might encourage children to be tossing pine cones. And since
you've put chickenwire over it anyway, maybe that can be either raised
higher or extended to a wider area of protection.
ANY thick groundcover would ruin the area for a dog's squat, since what
they're liking is the fresh dirt with nothing in the way, but getting the
groundcover established might be a trick unless you buy a lot already well
developed to start with. Below are some off-the-cuff groundcover
possibilities, I think all would be fine in Zone 7.
Groundcovers that are vengeful would include "crimson pygmy" barberry.
It's brittle if stepped on, but if a dog steps on it, it'll sure be sorry.
And it's slow-growing so if you want it as a ground cover you have to
plant a lot of them figuring they won't grow but two or three inches a
year. It can grow to two feet high, but don't hold your breath. Other
dwarf barberries are more apt to grow two to three feet a bit more
rapidly, or could be purchased larger in order to plant a hedge dogs
couldn't very well get over, then in the midst of the hedge you could
still have the bulbs you originally intended (though lily & many other
bulbs do fine under the dappled shade of taller barberries).
Dwarf Euphorbia Crown of Thorns is a low-maintance groundcover with wicked
spines. There are also many wonderful euphorbia groundcover roses in
splendid cultivar colors, & Rosa sp roses often called "shrub roses" such
as Rosa carolina that stay under two feet tall but four feet wide, which
only take a few to make a great barrier. Some are nearly thornless but
others are thick with thorns. By "groundcover" though this means they grow
thick & cover the whole area they're permitted, at one to three feet tall,
so not little things that cling to the soil, though there are also vining
roses that function nicely as short-short groundcovers that most people
trellis but they don't need to be trellised.
Something thorny that clings more to the ground could include several
types of vining raspberries & blackberries, there are some very small
varieties that unless trellised just creep around on the ground. These can
be very decorative, lovely blossoms & fruit for the birds (probably
wouldn't want the fruit for yourself where dogs could still lift a leg).
You do have to care for vining rubra cultivars though, because otherwise
they get too brambly-homely over time. They die back in winter but can be
left as dead stickers until new growth starts, for a year-round "ha ha!
stuck-your-bum!" threat to dogs.
Smilex or Greebriar aka climbing asparagus forms a woody thorny vine
barrier, & is sometiems called "cat briar" because it gets the better of
cats. Not all species of smilex are equally thorny, but most would be very
grim for a dog to squat his tushy onto.
But really vengeful groundcovers aren't essential; anything you plant
there that doesn't die back (as most bulbs do -- bulbs probably weren't
the choicest option to begin with in such an exposed public-access
location) & which can be planted close together would eventually make the
area no longer invitingly flat with freshly churned for a squat. Think of
the ideal flowering woody shrubs & get the biggest ones that look best in
the spot, & if dogs poo under those from time to time, wouldn't be quite
the same degree of end-of-the-world as for bulbs & little things.
-paghat
--
"Flowers are commonly badly designed, inartistic in
color, & ill-smelling." -Ambrose Bierce
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Birdy
Paghat, I wasn't aware that dogs have a particular preference for bare ground.
I hope you're right and it doesn't take spiny vengeance to keep the hounds at
bay. I loved your suggestions -- will look into all and see what is feasible
and affordable, since I'm going to have to buy a number that are already
established, as you suggested. I have discovered that pruned rose canes are an
effective squirrel deterrent; maybe this fall I'll throw a few into the tree
enclosure too, just as a bit of negative reinforcement. I was probably overly
optimistic to think that bulbs would survive in such an exposed spot, but I was
planting in late September and I felt I needed to make a hopeful gesture. In
fact, someone actually gave me a dozen daffodil bulbs in the fall and
instructed me to plant them in a public place -- that was my share of about a
million daff bulbs that had been donated by various benefactors as a memorial
for Sept. 11. Something told me not to plant those bulbs "in public" -- I put
them just inside my front yard fence where everyone can see them, and they're
doing very nicely, safe from dogs.
Ingrid, thanks for the advice, but an electrified fence is not an option on a
city street, no matter how effective it would be. Anyway, I'm afraid it's the
owners who need correction, not the hounds. Maybe I could just patrol the tree
with a cattle prod... <very evil grin>
-- Birdy
>I wrote:
>
>> I live in Brooklyn (zone 7), on a nice tree-lined block. There is a very
>> large sycamore in front of my house.
<snip>
>> What I need to know is this: Is there any ground cover that can help deter
>> dogs? A low holly, or something else with unwelcoming spines? It's got to be
>> low, because I want my crocuses and other bulbs to be seen when they emerge.
>> And it's got to be reasonably durable and not too fussy about watering; I
>> water, but summer here can be brutally dry. I'd greatly prefer something
>> evergreen. The enclosure gets lots of light, but not very much direct
>> sun in the summer, since it's under the sycamore's canopy.
>>
>> Anything come to mind?
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Birdy
Paghat replied:
>Pine cones would make a nice-looking mulch, they tend to discourage
Joe Stead
Philadelphia, and could be in Brooklyn. I'm sorry but I forget where I got
mine. They do flop during the winter and early spring, but as soon as the
ground dries out a little they perk right up and are wicked enough to keep all
but the most insane hunting dogs away.
Jess Richards
I have the exact same problem you describe (tree pit in Brooklyn serving as the neighborhood dog toilet) only now my not-yet-mature street tree seems to be suffering and I have a baby tree in a nearby pit I'm worried about... What steps did you try? What worked and didn't?
Paghat and others,
So many great ideas--THANK YOU!
Marco Moock
> I have the exact same problem you describe (tree pit in Brooklyn
> serving as the neighborhood dog toilet) only now my not-yet-mature
> street tree seems to be suffering and I have a baby tree in a nearby
> Paghat and others,
Use dust pepper. Dogs can smell very precisely and don't like it, so
they will choose another place to shit.
Unknown
location as a toilet, so maybe it would work for dogs too. They have a
pretty strong smell, so they might also discourage the human leading the
dog. :-)
Unknown
survive in your climate, and how willing you are to inconvenience
pedestrians. Lantana, cat's claw acacia, gorse, heavily thorned roses,
blackberries. They are actually shrubs, all have thorns, and are nasty to
deal with. They are very invasive in the right climate. An actual ground
cover would be what I call goat's head thorns. I don't know the actual
name or the latin name. Their seed is like a caltrop, with a spike always
facing up. They survive drought and frost, not sure about freezing. The
thorn penetrates bicycle tires easily, and is a real bother wherever they
are found because of the continuous flats. So, you are doing social
damage if you use them, but dogs will not walk where they grow after the
first time one goes in their paw.
Ralph Mowery
says...
ground.